January 27, 2020 4.59 pm This story is over 50 months old

Short Ferry Road near Lincoln finally back open after flooding

It was closed for over two months due to flooding

Photo: Michael Kheng, Kurnia Aerial Photography

A road near Lincoln finally re-opened on Monday after flooding forced it to be closed for over two months.

Lincolnshire County Council’s highways team carried out an investigation at Short Ferry Road in Fiskerton earlier this month. The council had initially feared the floodwater would have damaged the road and it might be liable to collapse when it re-opened to traffic.

Short Ferry Road was re-opened late in the afternoon on Monday, January 27 after tests revealed the road was stable and safe to be open again.

Over 1,000 acres was still underwater last month and a road closure was put in place after the Barlings Eau was breached. The Barlings Eau, five miles west of Lincoln, flooded into land around Short Ferry after the bank collapsed on November 9.

As previously reported, an investigation began earlier this month after farmers near Lincoln were left stranded in November 2019 by flooding into land around Short Ferry.

The Environment Agency has been working to rectify the situation, pumping flood water from the road and the surrounding fields. The pumps were removed from the road last week.

Karen Cassar, Assistant Director for Highways at Lincolnshire County Council, said: “Whilst it is a relief to see the road open again, we may not be completely out of the woods just yet.

This was a significant flooding incident with such a vast amount of water, and as the land continues to dry out, we might see the state of the road deteriorate.

“We’ll be monitoring the road closely over the coming months to assess what, if any, work will need to be done to make sure Short Ferry Road remains safe for drivers.”

Councillor Ian Fleetwood, member for Bardney and Cherry Willingham, said: “It’s been a long road to get to this point, and I’d like to thank the council’s teams and the Environment Agency for their work in clearing the floodwater and reopening Short Ferry Road.

“The reopening of the road marks the next step in our community recovering from the flooding events of last year.”